A princess in his arms
by bandykullan
Summary: Bail Organa contemplates his newly adopted daughter. Written back in 2003, so slightly AU when it comes to the ending of ROTS


******A princess in his Arms**********

He had gone into the room as silent as he could, in order not to wake the woman who lay in the bed. She was beautiful, so he had always thought, but now her face was pale and her curls, who usually were put up in some complicated fashion, were felted together. She was exhausted, she didn't sleep because she needed the recreation, she slept because her body hadn't been able to support her anymore. She had been drained of her energy, and he could only hope that her condition wasn't as serious as it looked. She had collapsed and they carried her back to her bed in the starship, but she wasn't his main concern. He had sneaked in here to make sure that the baby was ok, even though the mother wasn't strong enough to take care of her.

As careful as if he was lifting a box filled with crystal sculptures, he took the baby into his arms and carried her away to other end of the room, where a whisper wouldn't wake the frail woman in the bed. He wasn't careful enough though, the baby opened an eye, waked by the sudden movement. She didn't cry though, could she know that they had to be silent? That her mother needed to sleep.

_- Hello, Leia_, Bail Organa said when he thought she looked at him with the intriguing eyes of a baby. She was a little miracle Bail realised, her small hand clutching one of his fingers. A little miracle born into an unsteady galaxy, a galaxy ripped apart by civil war. It was amazing that she had been born, and everything about her was so perfect. Her tiny fingers had nails on them, eyelids were protected by small lashes. It was hard to imagine that this little baby-girl would be a danger to the Empire, this little baby that he held in his arms, would she be able to one day defeat the Emperor and bring back the republic.

Obi-Wan had thought so, or at least either she or her brother would do it, that's why it had been so important to split the siblings up. Obi-Wan had taken the boy and brought him to Tatooine, and now Bail Organa stood here with the girl in a ship that swirled through hyperspace, hurrying to the safety of Alderaan. At first Bail had just agreed on taking Padmé and the girl to Alderaan and hide them there, but now when he held Leia in his arms, heard her breathing and the small noises of a baby that was about to fall asleep he realised the he loved this little child. It didn't matter that he wasn't her biological father, he knew in his heart that emotionally he would be as close to her as a father ever could. He would bring her up in the royal palace in Aldera, she would be his princess, and he would teach her everything he knew about life on Alderaan and Coruscant. He was glad that Padmé had chosen a name for her that was original, but still it wouldn't sound strange to Alderaanian traditions either.

Little Leia, he thought, if you are anything like your mother you will grow up to be one of the most fabulous women in this galaxy. But what did she have from her father? Would she be able to use the Force? The boy had been strong, otherwise Obi-Wan wouldn't have taken him with him, but he didn't know about Leia. Deep in his heart he wished that Leia wasn't strong in the Force, without anyone being able to teach her about it, he was afraid that she would, she would...

He didn't even dare to think the thought to its end, this little helpless baby, no she would never turn into a monster like Vader, she would remain innocent and goodhearted, at least as long as he would be under his protection.

Padmé started to moan silently, and Bail turned towards her. He sat down on the bed and stroke her chin to calm her again. She had lost everything in such a short period of time, her husband, her son, even her name. From now on Amidala was dead, and for the rest of her life she would have to hide away in order to protect her children. He placed Leia beside her in the bed, she had lost so much and Bail knew that she would probably have to loose Leia too within a near future. But now the mother and the child could sleep close to each other, forgetting what a troublesome galaxy they were living in.

When he saw that Padmé slept deeply once again he silently left the chamber. They would be arriving on Alderaan in 11 hours, he needed to arrange a good back story to why he would be returning from the wars with a daughter in his hands. Questions would be asked, but at least his sisters would rejoice in their little niece. And Bail already knew that even if there lay hard times ahead, nothing would ever be able to break the bond between him and his little adoptive daughter, his little princess, his beloved Leia.


End file.
